Võrklaev presented the figures at a meeting of the state budget committee on Monday.

The government had the most amount of unspent money at €189.2 million. Several other ministries, including education, interior, and economic affairs and communications, handed back more than €70 million each.

Võrklaev said previous years' transferable funds were distorted due to successive supplementary budgets connected to the pandemic and full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The minister said the government's unspent money includes reserves, needed in case of an emergency, which are mostly carried over from year to year.

He said it has been possible to reduce the balance over several years, but some of the same ministries always request extra money.

"Now we have to ask ministries why the money is not being used for and what it was intended. A certain flexibility is understandable, but at the moment it does not seem to be realistically monitored," he said. "How do you have a situation where you have a shortage of money all the time, but certain ministries have a surplus all the time?"

The minister said the process is labor intensive as each ministry will need to study each budget line. He believes the money will have been allocated, but an explanation of why it is unspent is needed.

Võrklaev said the ministries had until May 31 to publish the content of the unspent funding, and most have done so.

"There are a few ministries that are not, but I don't know them by heart. Certainly, we have a basis to move forward, so to look behind each line and look for savings," Võrklaev said.

Committee Chairman Urmas Reinsalu (Isamaa) was not happy with the minister's answers claiming they were unclear. He said government expenses are reduced only on paper, but not in reality.

The chairman pointed out that if the Republic of Estonia had €18.7 billion available on a consolidated basis, of which €16.5 million was used, then the difference is €2.2 billion. If €750 million has been returned, that still leaves €1.45 billion. Where is this money?

"At the moment, we have lost control over the management of the budget, when €2.2 billion is unspent and we cannot answer in real time what that money is," he said.

Of the €750 million transferred this year from the 2023 budget, €638 million are expenses, €100 million are investments, and €3.8 million are financing measures.

The minister said the transferable figure was €958 million in 2023, €700 million in 2022, and €689 million in 2021.

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